Directions

Dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm water.

Combine the all-purpose flour, pastry flour and salt in a bowl. Stir in the yeast mixture and applesauce and knead. Dough shouldn't be sticky, but it shouldn't be dry either. If too sticky add 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour till you get the right consistency. If too dry, add 1 tablespoons of water at a time till you get the right consistency.

Roll out into a rope and cut into 8 pieces. Shape each piece into a ball and roll out till it's anywhere from a 6 to 8 inch circle

There are two ways to cook pita bread. The flavor is a bit different with both. To Bake Pita: Preheat oven to 500 degrees F (260 degrees C) and put a pita on a wire cake rack. Toss in the rack and cook for 3 minutes or until the bread stops puffing up. When you take it out, smash down the pita (Careful, its hot!) and quickly put it in a plastic freezer bag. To Fry Pita: Heat olive oil in a skillet over high heat. When almost smoking, place a pita in the pan and cook for a few minutes on each side, till brown spots begin to appear. It should look something like a tortilla when you're done. Put in a plastic bag once it has cooled a bit.

Most Helpful Positive Review

Mar 16, 2006

I made the pita bread with my own modifications. I changed the portion of pastry flour to 1 1/4 cups of bread flour. I also substituted 1 tablespoon of honey instead of 1 1/2 teaspoon of white sugar. I used a standmixer with the dough kneader attached, then hand knead after that. Not mentioned in the recipe..., you need to put the dough in a warm area and let it rise for 30 minutes. Knead it the second time. Do a baguette roll to the dough (the technique can be found here). Pre-heat the oven to 500 degree F with the pizza stone inside (rack in the lower third). Cut the dough into 12 small pieces. Stack two pieces then roll them together (so the dough would have more air). Make sure the rolled out dough is near paper-thin (VERY important and this is what makes this recipe a pita instead of a thin crusted pizza dough). Spray some water on pizza stone before place the thin dough on top. Baked for 5-minutes or until it's slightly browned (so it'll be slightly crispy, puffy alone is not enough! Use your oven light to monitor). When ready, flip the lightly browned & puffy pita over (upsidedown) on a flat surface. Soak a piece of paper towel with water, then use it to press the pita down (slowly or it'll break). After the pita cooled to room temperature, put it in an air-tight container, if not consumed immediately.

Most Helpful Critical Review

Amazing recipe, I can't believe how much they charge in the store for something that is so easy to make yourself at home. They even have the pocket inside!
I baked mine on a pizza stone. They turned out great.

Good bread, not as fluffy as I'd have liked.I may have done something wrong. These freeze well, and thaw nicely. I'll thaw layered in a damp non-fuzzy dish towel in the oven if I need several. For just one or two, I'll thaw them over the gas burner. These cook up nicely and quickly. I roll them out into 8" rounds and bake them 4 at a time on a pizza stone. So far this is the best recipe I've found.

I added 1 tablespoon of water to the 8 serving version because the dough was dry and didn't hold together. I also substituted all-purpose flour for the pastry flour and added 1 teaspoon of gluten per cup of flour--both baking versions turned out great!

I just tried this tonight, and it turned out great! I think that I'll just tweak the amount of sugar/salt and perhaps use some garlic powder the next time. I especially appreciate its versatility and that apple sauce is used instead of oil! Thanks for the EASY recipe!

*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

**Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.

(-)Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.